


Welcome to Sci-Vale

by AughtPunk



Category: Welcome to Night Vale
Genre: Alternate Universe - Science Fiction, Awkward Carlos, But not a lot of either of those don't worry, Carlos is Inhuman, Cecil is Human, Cecil is also, Implied/Referenced Suicide, M/M, No robots this time, Sci-Vale Au, a little violence, well you know how he is
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-04-02
Updated: 2015-04-11
Packaged: 2018-03-20 23:21:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,314
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3668967
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AughtPunk/pseuds/AughtPunk
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Cecil, the NV-DELTA's source of news and friendly propaganda, has something new to report on. No, it's not the fact that the multi-generation ship he lives on may finally settle down and start a proper colony. Nor does it have to do with the blood that's been spilled on the dark planet that the ship hovers above. Instead he's focused on something far more important: A new scientist named Carlos. A man who should not exist.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. First Day

**Author's Note:**

  * For [redelice](https://archiveofourown.org/users/redelice/gifts).



"Who _is_ he?"

 Maureen's fingers froze above her keyboard. She knew that tone far too well. Her boss was in one of his _moods._ All hopes of having a nice, easy day vanished with a single growl from his lips. Dreams of long lunches and snuck break-room naps died before they could even take root. For a brief moment Maureen debated ignoring her boss. She could resume typing up the morning's announcements and pretend her life wasn't going to get far more difficult. No. No, she knew it was pointless. Better to address it before he spent the rest of the day sulking about.

 "What are you talking about, Cecil?"

 She leaned back in her chair enough to face her grumbling boss. But Cecil wasn't in his normal spot in their cramped office. The holographic platform in front of the wall of monitor screens was empty, save for a few crumpled paper coffee cups by the base. Instead Cecil had moved in front of the large glass window that looked down at the dark planet below.  The Dark Planet could barely be seen against the black void that stood between it and the Generation Colony Ship they called home. One may have even thought nothing was there if it weren't for the ever-so-slight sliver of light that outlined the dark planet.

 "The new scientist, Maureen! Who is he? What does he want from us?"

 Great. Cecil just wasn't in a _mood._ That might have been easy to deal with.He was in a full blown 'staring at the dark planet of endless jagged mountains and unfathomably deep oceans' mood. Without looking Maureen tapped her computer's screen to bring up her collection of cat videos. From experience it was the only thing that lure Cecil out of the dark corners of his mind. She risked a peek at her screen. Her fingers had chosen a video in which an extra-fluffy kitten was trying to sleep on top of a large dog. Perfect. "Proper nouns, Cecil."

 "Him!"

  Cecil didn't as much wave his arm as he dramatically flourished at the wall of screens behind him. The normal pre-written news vanished only to be replaced with dozens of images pulled from the security cameras. Every repeated video was of the same man over and over again. Maureen coudln't see what Cecil was being so...Cecil about. The man didn't look strange at all. Barely mysterious at all. Dark skin, messy hair, wearing simple clothes and a lab coat. He wasn't doing anything strange either. She watched as the man stepped out of an elevator. Then the man stared far too long at a vending machine before walking away. Most of the looped videos was of the man walking down various hallways.

 "You know," Maureen rolled up her sleeves as she approached Cecil. It wouldn't be the first time she had to literally drag him to the holographic platform. "Just because you can access security footage doesn't mean you should. Danny's going to be pissed if he finds you using it to scope out guys."

 "First off!" Cecil spun around to face her. That was also done with an embarrassingly dramatic arm-sweep. Maureen long suspected that Cecil practiced his everyday arm movements over and over in private. "I have been given permission to access classified information if I feel the safety of the ship depends on it-"

 "He's even your type, isn't he?"

 "If the safety of the ship depends on it." Cecil finished. "And right now I believe that this man may be a threat to us."

 "Uh huh. And the fact that he has that little splash of grey you like so much has nothing to do with it."

 "Are you done?"

 Maureen tapped her foot. "Yes. No wait. He also has tattoos. Just like your last boyfriend. Now I'm done."

 "Thank you. As I was saying I believe this man may be a threat to us. Look at this." Cecil cleared his throat towards the screens. "F.E.Y.! Could you please bring up the live feed of section 32A from six-thirty this morning?"

 The computer let out a musical beep as the largest screen in the middle switched over to a new video. This was of an elevator located on the eighth floor if the large violet eight painted on it was to be trusted. Which, Maureen knew, may not. The NV-257 Generation Vessel had been repaired and adjusted and torn apart so many times it was a miracle it survived in space at all. That also meant several parts had been used to fix several other parts. Sometimes overnight thanks to the overly enthusiastic repair robots.

 "Look. Look!" Cecil pointed at the elevator as it opened. The man that had caught his fancy stepped out, sans lab coat. He looked around confused before heading off camera. "There he is. Six-thirty. Understand?"

 "Cecil, you're due on for announcements in like five minutes-"

 "F.E.Y.!" Cecil shouted. He always shouted the computer's name. "Bring up any feed of that same man from before six-thirty."

 The computer's beep was far less musical this time.

 Maureen frowned. "You can't give it an abstract command like that."

 "Fine. Please show literally any feed of this man from six-twenty five."

F.E.Y. let out another annoyed beep followed by a monitor flashing red. Cecil smiled smugly at Maureen, his eyebrows saying far more than his mouth could. And Maureen wasn't going to let him even try.

 "She's probably overloaded again." Maureen said. "Maybe there's a lot of other people checking this guy out."

 "Or he didn't appear on the colony until exactly six-thirty this morning."

 "That's-" Maureen squeezed the bridge of her nose. "You know what? I'm not having this conversation. You're crazy and you're on in five minutes. Do you think you can keep yourself in-check until after the afternoon announcements?"

 "I can do far more than that, dear intern!" With a somehow-smug spring in his step Cecil crossed over to the platform. As soon as his foot landed lights turned on and danced around him, forming into various shapes and dots. After a few seconds of wiggling they settled into far-more recognizable shapes. Shop signs, small buildings, weather patterns, even a cartoony cat that floated above the main report. "But there is one thing I need from you."

 "Anything you want, boss." Maureen said as she returned to her chair. "On in three."

 "Close your eyes." Cecil's voice dropped a few notches as the holograms turned from white to bright violet.. "Let my words wash over you..."

 ***

 Jane was going to murder her sisters. There was simply no way around it. They knew for a fact that she was the shyest of the triplets, so obviously this was a trap laid by them. She pressed her back against the metal wall and grabbed onto her lab coat's lapel. She pressed the small gold triangle pinned on her coat and hissed into it.

 "Ego to Id! Ego to Id!"

 There was a faint hiss of static between her ears followed by a deep yawn.

 "This is Id." Said her sister's voice. "What's up? Can't find the new guy? Super said he should be down in the waiting area."

"He is! He's here! He's-" Jane peeked around the corner. The waiting room was as dusty and plain as always. Not that many people were interested in visiting the lab. Every now and then a cleaning robot would come through and dust the magazines, but that was it. Jane was also pretty sure she herself hadn't been in there since her first day in the lab.  The only thing that had changed was the man standing in front of the large windows. His attention seemed to be on the Dark Planet below and not on anything else. Hopefully not on her whispering, either. Judy!" Jane hissed again. "You didn't mention that he was a hunk!"

 White noise hissed between Jane's ears.

 "I'm coming down there." Her sister replied.

 "What? No! Don't do that! Boss said we can't scare the new guy off, remember?"

 "Ugh. Fine! Could you at least describe him?"

"Um." Jane poked her head back around the corner. The man was still staring out the largest window. She was almost certain he hadn't heard her. Hopefully. " He has...hair. Nice hair. Floofy. Grey around the temples. Strong jaw. Dark skin. Handsome. Very handsome. I think I see some tattoos on his wrist. Can't make out what they are."

 Another pause of static. "Are you _sure_ he's the new guy?"

 "He is wearing a lab coat."

 "That's enough proof for me!" Jane could almost hear the grin in her sister's voice. "Look, go introduce yourself and bring him down here. I'll go tell Super about the good news. Then the three of us can give him the official tour. Even though you know June's going to be all 'blah blah don't judge by looks blah'. You know how she is."

 "Correct about everything?"

 "Yeah. I hate that. Id out." The static between Jane's ears faded, leaving her alone once more. After a quick hair-pat-down Jane stepped out into the dust covered waiting area. Once upon a time the room might have seemed some use. Now it was nothing but a collection of easily stained furniture and a handful of magazines that was older than she was. But even with those flaws it sure have one hell of a view of the Dark Planet below. Jane tried to make her footsteps as loud as she could to alert the man.

 He still didn't seem to notice her.

Okay. She could do this. All she had to do was say something to break the ice.

 "You know," Jane said, her voice just a bit too high pitched. "They say that the first few generations of the colony went mad from staring at the planet too long. Some even stole transport ships just to kill themselves on the surface! Isn't that crazy?"

  Every muscle in Jane's body clenched as she mentally slapped herself against the head. Maybe he didn't hear her. Maybe she could slink away before he noticed. Or maybe if she tried hard enough she'd be able to will herself dead. She took a deep breath, doing her best to force her heart to stop.

 "Shame, really."

 It took Jane a moment to realize the words had come from the man. That was not the voice she expected from him.

 "Oh. Oh yes! A deep shame." She said as she grabbed onto the conversation topic for dear life. "But thankfully there hasn't been anything like that recently. That we know of."

 "Oh?" The man finally looked away from the window and towards her.

 "Well! No one steals transport ships anymore! Although that might have to do with recent developments in portal technology you know what I'm just going to stop talking now hello I'm Jane!" She held her hand out. "Jane Kaktos."

 The man stared down at her hand for a second too long. Jane was thrilled, honestly. She could deal with awkward. She's dealt with awkward for her entire life. This she could handle. He smiled and shook her hand a bit too hard.

 "Carlos."

 "Carlos...?"

 "The scientist." Carlos adjusted his coat with pride. He spoke with an air of certainty that most people only dreamed of.  "I am a scientist."

 "I...see." Jane nodded to herself. "What's your field of study?"

 Carlos' cheek twitched. His voice didn't sound so certain anymore. "...water?"

"Great! We needed a Hydrologist on our team! The last one isn't with us anymore. Well, technically I guess he is still part of the lab but he drank too much of the water from the planet and sorta went a little crazy. Keeps saying that he can communicate with the spirits of the dead and now knows ancient magic spells and I'm talking too much again so how show you to the lab?"

 "He drank the water?" Carlos said as he followed Jane out into the far less dusty hallway.

 "Um, yes. We didn't find out until after he went 'missing' with all of our samples. By the way, don't drink the water samples."

 "Understood. So, what part of the lab is this?"

 "The hallway?" Jane looked over at Carlos. He had stopped halfway down the hall in front of a raised circle on the floor. "Oh! Be careful! The Noon report should be starting any-'

_**Good afternoon, listeners!** _

 Carlos jumped back as light poured out from the circle. Floating above the glowing platform was the life sized image of a man in a sharp cut suit. He stared at the hologram as it spoke with an obviously-forced smile on its lips.

  
_**The time is now 12:35 on this beautiful Monday afternoon! Hopefully everyone is almost done with their Strexcorp approved prepacked lunches! ** _ _**Remember, Strexcorp approved prepackaged lunches are perfectly balanced for every individual worker's needs to keep them energetic throughout the day! Don't forget to take your Sunshine Brand vitamins! Sunshine Brand Vitamins are guaranteed to give you a full day's worth of sunshine in a single pill.** _

**_Strexcorp would also like to remind you that the following areas are still closed for repairs: The Library. The Dog Park. The Bowling Alley and Arcade Funcenter. Floors five through eight. And the frozen yogurt shops on floors two, nine, and twenty-nine. Please avoid these areas until the repair robots have finished their their tasks. ** _And remember,_** ** _just because you have an allotted hour off for lunch doesn't mean it's mandatory!_**  
_ **

The hologram flickered once before cutting out completely. Carlos flexed his fingers over the circular floor panel. He was transfixed on the empty air until Jane cleared her throat. 

"Terrible, right?" She said to fill the odd silence. "We haven't had our projectors updated in like forever. I hear over in the corporate side of the colony their holograms of him look totally real! Like, you couldn't tell if there was a person standing next to you or not! The one in the lab is even worse. It's just this little table-sized thing. Not that our lab is bad! Or that we're lacking funding! Um. Any questions so far?"

"Where's the bathroom?" Carlos said as he finally pulled his hand away.

"Oh. Right down the hall to the left." 

Jane waited until Carlos had walked out of what she hoped was his hearing range before she clicked on her golden lapel triangle. There was another hiss of static, followed by her sister's voice.

"What's up, Ego?"

"Sorry, Id." Jane whispered quietly. "I'm pretty sure the new guy is into men."

"What? How the hell did you find out so quick? Wait. Don't tell me you actually made a move!"

"What? No! Of course not! It's just..." Jane glanced down at the raised circle on the floor. "You should have seen the look he gave Cecil. Yowzah."

*** 

From above the Dark Planet was terrifying. Black mountains cut from obsidian. Deep oceans of endless depths. Forests as old and ancient as fear itself. From the observation deck of the colony the Dark Planet was nothing short of a jagged nightmare hanging on the void of space. But now that he stood upon the shores of the planet it was actually pretty nice. Those mountains were snow-capped and artistic. The forests filled with large, charming mushrooms. And the oceans! Those oceans that once threatened to swallow him whole now playfully lapped at his feet. Even though the sky was black there was a soft glow from the various plants lighting the world up enough to give the appearance of a world right on the edge of dawn.

Apache rather liked it.

A small part of his brain struggled to remind him that his opinion on the planet may be effected by severe oxygen deprivation. There was breathable oxygen on the planet, yes. But simply not enough. Apache vaguely recalled June saying something about 'death zone' and talking about mountains back on Earth. He think it was June who said it. It might have been Jane. Thoughts were getting harder to hold onto, and his body was aching for rest. Which, according to Judy would be an even worse idea.

He was sure Judy said that. Maybe June. But it didn't really matter anymore.

The important thing was that he finish his task while he still could. 

Apache dropped the case he was carrying onto the sand by his feet. He sat down next to it, not caring about the water soaking into his pants. With caring, if shaky, hands Apache emptied the the case. He laid the items in the sand around him as best as he could. A few feathers he had collected on his last trip to Earth. A handful of blue rocks that had been carved into various animal shapes. An old pocket knife that was a gift from an ex-lover from long ago. Finally a faded photo that even he couldn't make out anymore. Not that it mattered. The people within in were long gone. It was only fitting to Apache that their images joined them.

The final item was a small mushroom that had been harvested from the forest. Apache knew that June, or Jane, would be cross with him for stealing one of her samples. But he also knew that his coworker being mildly annoyed was nothing compared to his own sacrifice. He spun the little mushroom between his fingers, marveling at the natural luminance upon its surface. Like the rest of the mushrooms on the planet it was covered in tiny glowing spots of various colors. The ones on these were mostly purple with a few pinks here and there. Apache popped the mushroom into his mouth and chewed without a second thought to danger or safety. Or anything. Everything beyond basic motor functions was starting to get hazy.

Apache felt the mushroom pop and fill his mouth with static. Numbness spread to his lips, his nose, and within seconds overtook his head. He leaned back as he enjoyed the sensation of nothingness wash over his aching body. All the little aches and pains that made up life were no more, replacing it with a sort of fluffiness and light. He moved his fingers in front of his face without feeling the action. With those same barely-functioning hands Apache picked up the pocket knife and pressed the blade against his thumb. Blood trickled down the blade.

Nothing.

He pressed a little harder, watching the blade's tip sink in deeper.

Still nothing.

 It took a bit for the blade to finally stop against what Apache assumed was his finger bone. There was no pain. Good. With a jerk he pulled the blade out, causing blood to spurt down into the water now engulfing his legs. Drop by drop the blood spread through the crystal-clear water turning it black. With distant eyes Apache watched the blood slowly peter out and fade naturally into the ocean's slow moving waves. It wasn't until the very tip of his toes go numb did he pick up the pocket knife once more. He turned his eyes up to the eternal night sky. Above he could see the distance shape of his NV-Colony, its red blinking lights standing out against the stars.

He pointed the blade towards himself and whispered to the heavens.

"сколько лет сколько зим."

The blade sunk into Apache's neck far easier than it did into his thumb.


	2. Second Week

The problem with Cecil was that he was a survivor. No matter how many times the station changed hands he would always be the reading the news. According to the records Maureen dug up Cecil had join the Announcement Station when he was an intern and never left. Before him, according to the records, most announcers would stay only a few years before quickly being replaced by someone younger and prettier. Upgrading, the records called it. After Cecil showed up no amount of physical threats or manipulation could get him to leave. But even the most vigilant survivor could make a mistake. All Maureen had to do was exploit his weakness.

"Cecil! I got coffee!"

Maureen stood by the studio's door with the piping hot cup of coffee in her hands. She wasn't sure if it could legally be called coffee anymore. The barrister referred to it as 'a molten cup of liquid death black as tar and twice as thick'. Deep down she was honestly afraid about what would happen to the floor if she dropped it. She cleared her throat and tried again.

"It's from the coffee shop by Big Rico's!"

She heard stirring from within the dark room.

"The Big Rico's on floor thirty-five, in the business district."

This time there was a sound that only could be described as 'a chair being pushed out of the way' followed by her boss magically appearing in the doorway. Cecil usually had bit of a sickly air about him, but today he looked like hell. The bags under his eyes spoke of a sleepless night. He never got enough sleep on 'old western movie marathon' night. Another weakness Maureen knew to exploit.

"My angel. My hero. My most perfect intern." Cecil's deep voice overflowed with love. "I don't know how to even begin to thank you."

"You could not fall asleep during the morning broadcast. That could be nice."

"I shall make a note not too. But I must ask, what is the occasion? I thought the smell of coffee made you-"

Maureen waited until Cecil took the cup from her hands before she acted. The first step was the most difficult one: getting past him. There wasn't enough room to slip past without risking the boiling hot coffee from spilling all over her. So instead she dropped down to the floor and crawled through Cecil's parted legs. By the time his sleepy brain begun to react she had already gotten back onto her feet and was halfway to the wall of monitors. Behind her she heard Cecil call out into the room.

"F.E.Y.! Delete-"

"F.E.Y.!" Maureen shouted over Cecil as she stepped up onto the raised platform. "Undo all closed windows from between six am to eight am!"

The main computer let out a musical series of beeps before the screen flickered and showed-

"Kitten videos?" Maureen stared up at the wall, confused.

Cecil, after a sip of coffee, let out the smuggest chuckle she had ever heard. "Why Maureen, is something the matter? As you can see I've been here all morning looking for a good clip to play for the the morning news report. After all, my Kitten Break is one of our highest rated segments. Now if you could please move I do think we have a broadcast to prepare."

"F.E.Y., show all videos in the folder 'Cecil’s Unbeta'd Fanfiction Do Not Read'."

"Maureen! Wait!"

The computer sang once more as the videos of kittens sitting in hats vanished and were replaced with new ones. Maureen suspected what Cecil had been hiding, but what she didn't guess was the sheer number of videos he had. The monitors split up into tinier segments, each showing off the same person over and over again. She turned around to face Cecil with an angry gleam in her eyes.

"Really Cecil? REALLY?"

"Maureen-"

“I knew you were up to something, but this?”

“I-”

"You're STILL stalking that scientist?!"

"I'm not stalking-"

"There's hundreds of videos here! It's only been two damn weeks! You're stalking him!"

"I am assessing how dangerous he might be." Cecil stepped up onto the raised platform next to Maureen. He held his cup of coffee in front of him like a shield. 

"There's videos in here of him sleeping!" Maureen touched one of the smaller squares, causing it to expand. It was in fact a video of Carlos sleeping on a couch in some waiting room. "Cecil, this is beyond creepy. You know that, right?"

"There's something strange about it." Cecil tapped the square to shrink it back down. "As far as I can tell he doesn't have a home. He always uses public restrooms and sleeps in the laboratory's waiting room. If he doesn't have a private quarter than he really did appear out of thin air."

"Or maybe he lives in one of the dorms and can't stand his roommates. Not all of us are lucky enough to inherit a home, Cecil."

The words fell heavy between them. Cecil flexed his hand, his eyes searching the fall of videos. He reached out and tapped a square off to the side. It opened up to a shot of what looked to be the laboratory. Various scientists were huddled over their desks hard at work. 

"Look at this one, Maureen. Really look."

Maureen's gaze jumped from scientist to scientist until it fell onto the new guy. He had a row of beakers full of water on his desk lined up in front of him. Every now and then the man would nod and write something down on a clipboard. After that he would rub his chin thoughtfully. Repeat.

"He's doing science?"

"No, he's nodding while looking at beakers full of water. That's all he's done for the past two weeks. I've never actually seen him test anything!"

"Okay, maybe he's a crazy homeless guy. Still!" Maureen poked Cecil's chest. "Then call someone in the lab and give them the heads up! I mean, doesn't your friend Diane work down there?"

"Well, yes. But-"

"But?"

Cecil finally put his cup of coffee down onto the platform's safety rail. "She said  that Carlos is the best Hydrologist they've had in years. That he's already discovered a few minerals or something that the old Hydrologist completely missed and other sciencey stuff I didn't understand. Also he gets along great with everyone and Diane kept stressing to me that he's extremely single."

"So he's a great crazy homeless guy." Maureen rubbed her eyes. "This can't go on, Cecil. If word gets out that the Voice of the NV-DELTA can  watch their every movement people are going to flip! Like riots or something! God, do you know what Daniel will say if he finds out about this!?"

"He'll just make some beep boop noises at me?"

"Wow. Wow. Okay. Your cyborg-racism aside, this has to stop. So here's what's going to happen." Maureen's hands moved across the screens, closing each video as she went. "First, we're going to delete all of these. Second, you're going to stop being weird and just go talk to the guy or something. Like a normal human being. Try to be a normal human being. I'm begging you to be a normal human being."

"Maureen, I can't-"

"Because if you don't I'm going straight to Cardinal with all of this."

Pain crossed Cecil's face before he let out a defeated sigh. "Fine. I'm sure I can think of some excuse to talk to him."

"You don't need an excuse."

"Easy for you to say." Cecil's shoulders slouched. "Anything else you want to yell at me about?"

Maureen stepped off the platform. "Yes, you really need to stop saying horrible things about Daniel. None of us want to be stuck in yet another HR meeting about acceptance, okay? Now finish your coffee, you're on in fifteen."

"I swear I saw him drink motor oil once."

"Didn't hear that!" Maureen shouted before slipping out the office.

***

"Good morning everyone. Welcome to the portal room. My name is Earl Harlan, but you can call me Earl. Since there's some new faces here I'm going to go over the basics of portal-based travel. Please wait until the end for your questions."

The portal room was small. Very small. Barely able to fit Earl, the nine scientists, and the machine. Said machine taking up most of the room. Then again it wasn’t like there was much to the portal machine. Just a large metal hoop about seven feet wide with a few wires connecting it to a button on the wall. For being the heart of the NV-DELTA it wasn’t that impressive.

Earl flipped over the first sheet of paper on his clipboard. Not that he had to.  He memorized every word on the documents years ago, but there was something nice about having a prop to filled with while he talked. For one, it kept himself from staring at the newest scientist that had joined the lab crew. That way he could get through this without blushing like a schoolboy.

"First, do not touch the edge of the portal. Do not go near the edge of the portal. Think of the portal like a large two dimension bubble. And like a bubble it will pop if you touch it. You do not want this bubble to pop. You certainly do not want this bubble to pop while you're walking through it. Understood?"

There was a mummer of agreement from the scientists. One sounded far more cheery than the others. Oh God, that was him wasn't it?

"Second. The portal will smell weird. We know the portal smells weird. There is nothing we can do about the smell. Understood?"

More mummers. The cheery voice was still there. It came from the middle. Was he standing in the middle?

"Third. You must keep your oxygen mask on at all times while you're on the planet. Although the oxygen level has dramatically increased thanks to the efforts of John Peters, the botanist-"

"You're welcome." Said a rather round man from the end of the line. Earl had no problem glancing up to smile at him. John was not the issue here.

"-You still can't walk around willy-nilly without an oxygen mask." Earl finished. "Doing so will lead to death. Understood?"

Mummers. The gorgeous man in the center of the line sad 'yes Earl'. Earl's knees got a bit wobbly hearing his name like that.

"And last but not least: Yes I do work at Tourniquet part time. No I can't get you a reservation. Not even if you ask nicely." A quick glance up was enough to see a few of the scientists' hopes get crushed. Not the new guy. His smile was as perfect as when he walked in. "Now. Any questions? Yes, June?"

"Do you know anyone who can get a reservation?"

"Not without extensive bribery. Diane?"

"Still on for Saturday's play date?"

Earl smiled. "Yes, and Roger's all excited to see Josh again. Anyone else?"

"Yes, what's with your eyes?"

Earl lifted his head. The question had come from the new scientist. He was staring at Earl with those beautiful eyes, seemingly not aware of the awkward silence that had filled the room. Nor did the man seem aware that one of the triplets was nudging him in the side while hissing under her breath. No, the stranger was looking right into Earl's eyes. His damaged, black-and-red eyes. Earl took a deep breath as the silence even got too much for him.

"Lost my eyes in an accident at age nineteen. I got to be first in line for the latest genetic implants."

"Oh wow!" The man's own eyes widen. "That's amazing!"

"You...could describe it that way." Earl said slowly.

"And was the eye coloration by design?"

"Carlos!" Hissed June, her nudges turning into full jabs.

"Let's just say that they worked out the kinks in later generations."  Earl cleared his throat. "Does anyone have any other questions?"

"Do your eyes-"

"Nope!" June covered Carlos' mouth before he could get another word out. "No questions at all! Feel free to open that portal up! Preferably right now!"

"Right. Step back everyone. And please don't mention the smell." Earl pushed a button on the wall next to him. He had just enough time to hold his breath before all the air in the room went, well, pop.

A very loud pop, but it did pop.

By the time the sound faded the large hoop in the middle of the room was now a perfect picture-window to a lovely alien beach. Although Earl wasn’t much for travel, he did enjoy the view working in the portal room gave him. No amount of windows looking down onto the planet could beat the eternal twilight of that world. Shame it had to smell like burnt metal.

“Okay everyone! Put on your oxygen masks and…” Earl’s voice trailed off as he realized all nine scientists were staring at the portal. Their eyes were wide, their mouths slightly parted. He didn’t make the connection to what happened until Diane let out an ear-shattering scream.

That lovely beach he had stared at so many times before now had a new feature. There, against the dark sands, was a slumped over sack of cloth and meat. One that had a terrible plastic headdress next to it. As the smell of rot entered the room he was already pounding the emergency button on the wall. He turned back to the scientists only to see the stunned silence had turned into full blow panic.

But not the new guy.

Everyone else was screaming, or crying, or cursing up a storm.

But not Carlos. Carlos was rubbing his chin. He was muttering under his breath. By the time the portal finally closed he had pulled out a clipboard and started to jot down notes.

Carlos was observing.

***

**_Listeners, I am sad to announce the passing of one Nicoli Pasternak._ **

The portal room was filled to the brim with police officers. They swarmed in and out of the open portal, their bodies forming a snake without end. One would leave only to be replaced by another from the other side with an empty tank and a bucket of…remains. Earl did his best not to think about it as he refilled their tanks again. And again.

**_Words cannot express the pain Strexcorp feels for the loss we have suffered today. Nicoli was a wonderful, hardworking young man who had done so much for the company. Our owners Erika, Erika, and Erika wish to extend their sympathy to his family and friends. If you are effected by his passing then please contact HR and you will be allowed a maximum three days to mourn._ **

“Feh. He didn’t have any friends. Or family.”

Earl finally realized there was someone standing next to him. One of the triplets that worked in the lab. June if her nametag was to be trusted. “You knew him?” He said as he picked up another empty tank.

“We worked together for a bit.”

“Oh, sorry.”

“He was an insane racist who thought he could do magical native american magic. He called himself the Apache Tracker for God’s sake.”

“Oh. Sorry?”

June shook her head. “Don’t sweat it. I mean hey, three days off right? They probably won’t take it off our vacation time. Probably.”

Earl attached the empty tank to the nozzle before he spoke again. “So, you waiting to be questioned or…?”

“Huh?” June blinked. “Nah, the police aren’t interested in us. Not till they figure out how Apache died. I guess it’s not clear ‘cause he’s sorta sludge now. I’m just waiting for Carlos to get done so I can escort him back.”

“Get done-” Earl finally spotted the man in the crowd. Carlos was standing in front of the small raised platform in the corner of the room. He must have removed the boxes stacked on top of it, because the hologram of Cecil was actually projecting clearly for once. Carlos was staring intently at Cecil, obviously hanging onto his every word.

“Huh.” Earl adjusted the nozzle enough for the air to pour in. “Does he always stare at the announcements like that?”

“Every time. Judy thinks there’s something off about him. Which is ridiculous. There’s totally something wrong with him. He gets lost! Like, actually lost! Like he was some kid or something. I didn’t think anyone could get lost.”

“Wow, really? Is he from the other side of the ship?”

“Probably. Bunch of weirdos on that side.”

“I hear that.” Earl removed the now-filled tank and handed it to the first police officer walking by. “Sorry about your field trip to the surface being ruined.”

“Nah, it’s cool. Now we get to test to see how the environment there reacts to the addition of decayed matter in the ecosystem. It’s a scientist thing. Speaking of scientist things-” June stood up on her toes. “Yo! Carlos! Time to get back to the lab! We got HR reports to fill out!”

Carlos looked across the room at them and God damn it there was that smile that warmed Earl’s insides again. It almost made up for him talking about Earl’s eyes. Almost. Earl did watch as Carlos easily weaved his way through the crowd of police officers and made his way over.

“Sorry about that.” Carlos said with a smile. “But I’m still fascinated with the hologram projections that are used for news reports.”

“It’s…literally in every room.” June said with a sigh. “And every hallway. We’ve been over this.”

“That doesn’t make it any less fascinating!”

“Yeah yeah. Let’s get going. See ya later, Earl.” June nodded at Earl before heading back into the crowd of police officers. Her method of getting through was far less gentle and involved a lot more shoving. 

“Yes.” Carlos cleared his throat. “Goodbye Earl. I’m sorry if my comment from earlier was out of line.”

“Don’t worry about it.” Earl said as he picked up his next tank.

“Because your eyes are beautiful. The most beautiful I’ve ever seen. I mean it.”

Earl dropped the tank. By the time his brain caught up to what was happening the handsome scientist was long gone, leaving with with nothing but a funny twist in his stomach.

**Author's Note:**

> I'm back! This is a bit different than what I normally write, so I hope you like it!
> 
> This story is based on the Sci-Vale AU by Redelice at http://redelicebeta.tumblr.com


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